Eastern Han Dynasty, not the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 836 Wang Yun plots to drive Ma Chao back

Dusk, thick as ink, spread across the eaves. Lü Bu, atop his neighing Red Hare, galloped back to his residence. The horse's hooves shattered the setting sun, and his Fang Tian Hua Ji, clattering against the doorknob with a deafening clang, thudded as the horse jolted forward. The door swung open, and Wei Xu, Song Xian, and a group of personal guards followed closely behind.

"Your Excellency, please calm down!" Wei Xu looked at Lü Bu's gloomy face and said cautiously, "If it weren't for the fact that you single-handedly stopped the Xiliang army on the top of Chang'an City on New Year's Eve, Chang'an would have been captured long ago! Today's reward is really unfair!"

"Shut up!" Lü Bu roared, slamming his painted halberd into the corridor column with a bang. The scarlet tassel on the halberd swept across the candlestick, extinguishing half the flame. The silver armor on the table gleamed coldly in the dim candlelight, only highlighting his rage. He tore off his exquisite brocade robe and hurled it against the wall, where it scraped against the screen, causing a rustling sound.

He kicked over the bronze charcoal stove, sending sparks flying onto his boots. Lü Bu remained oblivious, his eyes reddened as he stared at the bronze mirror on the wall. The reflection of his face twisted, veins bulging on his forehead, the scar at the corner of his eye throbbing with every breath. He looked like a furious lion.

At this time, a burst of rings and pendants jingled, and Diao Chan, dressed in a light gauze skirt, came out from the inner room with lotus steps. Her beautiful eyes were filled with worry, and she asked softly: "Fengxian, why are you so angry?"

Seeing Diao Chan's stunning beauty, Lü Bu's tense expression relaxed slightly, but his chest still rose and fell violently: "The emperor's reward is unfair! What merits and abilities did Liu Bei have to deserve such a generous gift?"

Diao Chan gently held his hand and said softly, "Fengxian, calm down. Now that we are surrounded by powerful enemies, it is time to work together. Don't let a small reward ruin the important things. Besides, my father has been waiting in the study, looking forward to discussing it with you."

Lü Bu's expression changed when he heard this. He waved his hand to signal Wei Xu and Song Xian to leave. Diao Chan considerately tidied up his messy clothes and armor, saying angrily, "Don't be angry when you go to see your father."

Lü Bu looked down at Diao Chan, his gaze gradually softening. He reached out and gently stroked her cheek, his rough fingertips brushing against the delicate skin. "Okay, okay, how could I be angry with Taishan?" He took a deep breath, temporarily suppressing his anger, and strode towards the study. The lanterns in the corridor swayed in the wind, lengthening his figure, as if foreshadowing that this storm had only just begun.

The candlelight flickered in the study. When Lü Bu entered, he found Wang Yun and Liu Xie, the Prince of Luoyang, bent over a map on their desk. Candle wax trickled down the gilded candlesticks, forming dark brown stains on the parchment map. Hearing footsteps, Wang Yun paused slightly, his wolf-hair brush between his fingers. An unnatural flush crept into Liu Xie's pale face.

"Greetings, father-in-law, and greetings, Prince of Luoyang." Lü Bu clasped his fists in salute, his painted halberd leaning against the carved lattice door, its red tassel drooping like congealed blood. Liu Xie hurriedly stood up and offered a weak hand, saying, "Marquis Wen, why are you being so polite? You're embarrassing me, Prince."

Wang Yun put down his wolf-hair brush, the ink stains on his fingertips gleaming dark purple in the candlelight. He gazed at Lü Bu's tense jawline and suddenly sighed, "Fengxian, have you been wronged today?" This sigh, half concerned and half tentative, startled a night owl from its perch on the beam, which fluttered against the window paper.

A wave of grievance washed over Lu Bu, and he kicked away the stool at his feet. The metal armor clashed with a cold, crisp sound. "Father-in-law! When we were defending the city, the emperor showed no favoritism, but now he's rewarding me for my merits and treating me like a beggar on the street!" He pounded on the table, making the bronze military symbols on the map jingle.

Wang Yun covered the map mark with his sleeve and turned to Liu Xie. "Fengxian, do you know why the emperor has suddenly become defensive?" He twirled his beard, his tone as cold as a venomous snake. "We haven't been able to capture Xiliang for a long time. If we retreat, they will scatter like birds and beasts. Yuan Shao and Gongsun Zan are deadlocked in Jizhou, and Sun Ce of Jiangdong has fallen victim to his series of vicious schemes... Now, the emperor is also beginning to fear us." He dragged out the words, like rubbing salt into Lü Bu's wounds.

"In that case," Lu Bu clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white. "We had agreed to fight on New Year's Eve, so why did the King of Luoyang..."

"Does Marquis Wen know what happened that night?" Liu Xie's Adam's apple rolled up and down. "The emperor asked me to stay up to watch the New Year. I wanted to take the opportunity to mix the remaining pills into his pills and increase the dosage. He would explode and die. But who knew that the Western Liang army would suddenly attack Liu Bei's camp! Chang'an City is in danger. The emperor personally met with Liu Bei and others. How could I stand a chance!" Before he finished speaking, the candlelight on the table suddenly exploded, casting a hideous shadow on the faces of the three people.

Lü Bu fiercely kicked over the pearwood flower stand beside him. Amid the sound of the celadon bonsai shattering, he gritted his teeth and said, "Am I just going to watch that scoundrel Liu Bei ride on my head? Chang'an City is impregnable. If the Xiliang army can't take it for a long time, they will retreat sooner or later. By then, the emperor will be fully fledged, and we won't have any chance!" The corners of his scarlet eyes suddenly became bloodshot, as if he wanted to devour the two people in front of him alive.

Wang Yun's bony fingers stroked the secret letter on the desk. Cao Cao's seal on the parchment glowed eerily in the candlelight: "Don't worry, Fengxian. I have already written to Meng De, ordering him to lead his troops westward from Luoyang immediately." He suddenly leaned closer, his cloudy eyes reflecting Lu Bu's distorted face. "If necessary, we can cooperate with Xiliang from within and without - offer Chang'an and eliminate the emperor!"

Liu Xie stumbled back upon hearing this, causing the bronze chimes on the antique shelf to buzz. "This...isn't this just handing over our ancestral heritage to someone else?!"

"Foundation?" Wang Yun suddenly burst into a meaningful sneer, and with a flick of his robe sleeve, he swept the bamboo slips off the table. "Prince Luoyang, do you know that your majesty's throne was obtained by Liu Bian through manipulating people's hearts and minds? What does all this have to do with Prince Luoyang?" He walked slowly closer and gently placed his old hand on Liu Xie's shoulder. It seemed to be soothing, but it made the latter involuntarily tense his back.

From outside the window came the sound of war drums from the Western Liang army, mingled with the patter of raindrops hitting banana leaves. Wang Yun gazed at the tents outside the moat, looming like a dark cloud over the city, his tone suddenly turning to a sigh: "The Western Liang cavalry are at the gates of the city. Chang'an has no natural defenses outside, and Liu Bei's troops are heavily armed within. If the emperor dies at this moment, not only will we have to face Liu Bei head-on, but the Western Liang army will also reap the benefits." He pulled a secret letter from his sleeve, unfolding it to reveal Cao Cao's seal. "I summoned Meng De to lead the army here precisely to plan a retreat for you."

Panic washed over Liu Xie's pale face. "But Liu Bei commands elite troops. If the Son of Heaven..." Before he could finish his words, Wang Yun had already gently slipped the secret letter into his hand. His fingertips traced the wax seal on the letter with undeniable force. "The Son of Heaven's youngest son is still in swaddling clothes. How could Liu Bei willingly support you? The only way is to let Cao Cao take over and give up Chang'an to Xiliang. When Liu Bei and the enemy are both defeated, you can raise your arms in the name of your legitimate bloodline..."

Wang Yun's pupils gleamed with brilliance amidst the interplay of light and darkness. He stepped back half a step and bowed, his posture imbued with the authority of someone in control of the situation: "Everything is for the sake of Your Highness's great cause. I hope Your Highness will make a decision soon." Liu Xie's fingers trembled slightly as he clutched the secret letter, and he finally nodded slowly: "It will all be up to Lord Situ to arrange..."

The candlelight flickered in the rainy night, and the scattered military tokens on the table reflected the overlapping figures of three people, like a picture of undercurrents of political intrigue.

Hoofs crushed the thin frost, and Ma Chao's dark cape billowed like billowing waves. The Aurora Horse beneath him trotted out its hooves, its silver mane streaking in the morning mist. This precious horse had accompanied him on his campaigns from Liang Province, and after ten days of marching, it showed no sign of fatigue. Instead, the thousand-plus cavalrymen behind him were exhausted—the horses foamed at the mouth, dark red blood seeped through the cracks in their armor, and several riders staggered and nearly fell off their saddles.

"General, shall we take a short break?" The deputy general's knuckles turned white as he gripped the reins, and hoarse gasps escaped his throat. Ma Chao pulled the reins, and the Aurora horse's front hooves soared into the air, neighing loudly, shattering the icicles on the treetops. He looked back at the cavalry formation winding like a long dragon, his brows slightly furrowed: "Hold on for another half a day, and we must be in camp before nightfall."

A chill wind, swirling with distant gunpowder smoke, swept past his ears, accompanied by the faint sound of metal clashing. As the towering silhouette of Chang'an City pierced through the clouds, Ma Chao's pupils suddenly constricted—the tattered Han flags on the city walls struggled in the wind.

The moat snaked like a silver ribbon, and the densely packed camps along its banks were draped in white banners, like a snowy plain sweeping across the landscape. A chill wind swept through the tents, billowing the white silk cloths like billowing waves, and countless mourning cloths rustled in the chill breeze. Ma Chao stared at this all-white scene, his throat tightening. Months had passed since the Chang'an Incident, and the Xiliang soldiers were still clad in heavy mourning, a testament to the depth of their family feud and the intensity of their hatred.

Blood boiling in his chest, Ma Chao abruptly tore off his bronze mask and roared to the heavens. The roar ripped through the air, startling the crows into a frenzy. He brandished his sword, his crimson cloak rustling, pointing directly at the city walls. "Brothers! Chang'an is within reach. Follow me back to camp! Once we have regrouped, we will crush this city gate and avenge this blood feud!" Over a thousand cavalrymen roared in unison, their voices echoing throughout the fields. The cold gleam of their armor and the sharpness of their swords intertwined to create a chilling murderous intent.

Just as he was about to spur his horse into a gallop, he heard the thunderous sound of hooves from the northwest. A squadron of black-armored scouts, forming a flanking formation, were approaching, their quivers swinging in eerie arcs on either side of their saddles. Before Ma Chao could react, a sharp crack of air pierced the morning mist, and a triangular arrow, with a piercing sound, pierced the air a few feet in front of the horses' hooves. The splash of ice startled the steeds and made them rear up.

"Retreat! We're all brothers!" Ma Chao jerked the reins, his Aurora horse neighing with its front hooves suspended in mid-air. He squinted at the point where the rain of arrows fell—the arrows were arranged in a crescent, the standard tactic of the Xiliang Iron Cavalry's "Goose Feather Intercepting Formation."

"Which battalion are you scouts from?" Ma Chao let the morning mist brush across his resolute face. The opposing cavalry didn't respond. Suddenly, over fifty riders split into two groups and circled around the rear like hawks with their wings spread. Their gleaming spears formed a dense, dense array.

"Stop now! All names are subject to inspection!" The bronze forehead guard of the leading scout gleamed coldly in the sunlight.

Ma Chao's heart trembled, and he immediately looked up to the sky and laughed loudly, scaring away the crows above his head: "Open your eyes and look carefully! I am Ma Mengqi!"

"Young Master Ma Chao has died a martyr in Chang'an. You, a thief, who has used the name of a heroic spirit, should be executed!" Before he finished speaking, the cavalry on both sides simultaneously nocked and pulled the strings of their arrows, the arrow tips emitting a poisonous blue.

Ma Chao dismissed the thousand cavalrymen behind him and rode alone towards the arrow formation. The morning mist swirled around him, his black cloak rustled, and the lion-swallowed sword tassel at his waist swept across the muddy and snow-spattered belly of his horse as he rode.

The scout captain's pupils suddenly shrank - the silver-white BMW and the other party's heroic appearance were exactly the same as the young master in his memory.

The scout captain yanked the reins, and as his horse reared to attention, he pinched his palms fiercely. Amidst the piercing pain, he rubbed his eyes, blinded by the wind and sand for ten days, and stared at the familiar figure approaching.

"Young Master?" His voice suddenly trembled, and the whip fell to the ground with a "clack".

With a thud, the scout captain fell from his horse, his knees thumping against the frozen ground. He looked up at Ma Chao in the morning light, a bitter taste in his throat. "I'm Zhang Qiang, a scout from the Loyalty Battalion under General Ma Dai. Three months ago, I heard that you... when you died for your country, the entire army wore mourning and marched towards Chang'an..." Before he could finish his words, tears mixed with mud and snow and pelted his armor.